2017-03-05

【Aiden in English】

        My grandmother’s birthday is coming up. I know, why would you care…, so what…, but this event is quite special. The day after today will be her eightieth birthday, which is very monumental for any person. However, I must say, these milestones in life are much less hyped at the moment than viewed from other times.

        Nevertheless, Grandma’s birthday deserves some sort of recognition. So mom brought us to a nice Chinese restaurant for dinner, as we usually do in this household. Although the food was great, I don’t really want to talk about the tastes of the night. I think most of my audience has gotten tired of my rambles of the same adjectives on Chinese food.

        In school, English class talked about themes involving milestones, such as passing a certain age. They say living past eighteen, twenty-one, and thirty are the large age milestones of the front half of life, but I think turning eighty is an extremely large milestone in general.

        Before medicine and technology allowed people to beat disease and prolong health, living to eighty was a very surprising and amazing feat to accomplish. However, nowadays, turning eighty has almost become normality. So why should we celebrate it?

        Turning 80 years old means that you have lived through 79 years of bashing, smashing, and tearing events that want to stop your heart. It is a symbol of strength, determination, and a will to live.

        Turning 80 also shows the experience within. By now, all critical advice given out can be and should be, taken seriously. Furthermore, the “respect your elders” motto becomes even more powerful, as the leverage of the elderly grows bigger and bigger. They’ve seen so much in their life, and their views on things can be much more logical and wise than a teenager facing stress and peer pressure.

        Turning 80 is a milestone that I hope to reach one day. Although it may be a long time, time always seems to find a way to sneak up on you. I mean, if 14 years can go by this fast, think about only how much longer it will take for 80 years. When life keeps chucking bombs at your head, years tick away large chunks at a time. Funny thing is, when you think about time, it slows down. It’s when you stop thinking about it, the watch begins to speed up. Maybe if I thought about time all the time, I wouldn’t grow old.

        Anyway, I’ll soon be giving out advice to the youngsters myself.

        Happy Birthday, Grandma!

【紅霞譯文】

        外婆生日快到了，我知道你未必留心甚至在意什麼，但此次慶生異乎尋常，後天便是她老人家八十歲誕辰，對任何人而言耄耋之年具有劃時代意義。然而我承認，當生命進入這類里程碑的那一刻肯定不及其它階段樂衷張揚。

        不管怎樣，外婆的生日值得好好慶祝。如同以往我家慣例，今晚媽媽帶我們去一家不錯的中餐館吃筵席，雖說菜餚可口，但我並非真要談及舌尖上的美味感受，想必多數讀者早已厭倦我對中式珍饈喋喋不休的讚譽。

        在學校，英語課上大家曾討論過有關里程碑的話題，譬如特定年齡，前半生中人們把十八歲、廿一歲和卅歲視為里程碑，但在我看來八十歲應被當成極其重要的里程碑。

        早在醫學科技能夠治病救人延年益壽之前，人活到八十歲簡直是一個不可思議的奇蹟；如今八十歲幾乎司空見慣，那麼我們為啥還要慶祝呢？

        到了80歲意味着您不畏艱辛已走過七十九年非凡歷程，它象徵力量、決心以及生活意願。

        到了80歲表明您見多識廣，現在大家對您的先見之明言聽計從。此外，隨着老年人作用越來越大， “尊敬長輩” 的座右銘也越來越盛行，比起面臨內在心理與外在同學雙重壓力的青少年，他們經驗豐富閱歷深厚。

        80歲也是我期盼有朝一日達到的里程碑，儘管要花上很長一段時間，但是白駒過隙，歲月總是不知不覺地從你眼皮底下溜走。我的意思是，假若14歲如彈指一揮間，那麼不妨考慮一下80年究竟需要多久。當你日理萬機，大把光陰一晃而過；有趣的是，當你盯着它不放，時間過得很慢，可當你由它而去，時間過得很快。也許我老想打發工夫，因此一時半會兒成熟不起來。

        無論如何，不久我將到了給年輕一代現身說教的年齡。

        祝外婆生日快樂！

Today in History(歷史上的今天):

2012: 新論大智若愚(Still Water Runs Deep)

2011: 生日聚會後續─自選禮物(Gift Selection)

Crosslinks(相關博文):

Peony Pavilion Asian Fusion, NJ(新州牡丹亭現代亞洲餐館)